AC / DC　

AC/DC’s mammoth power chord roar became one of the most influential hard rock sounds of the ’70s, and is now one of the defining sounds of rock and metal. In its own way, it was a reaction against ..more

Accept　

With their brutal, simple riffs and aggressive, fast tempos, Accept are one of the top metal bands to debut in the early ’80s, and a major influence on the development of thrash. Led by the unique ..more

Ace Frehley　

Along with Eddie Van Halen, Kiss’ Ace Frehley inspired numerous up-and-coming rockers to pick up the guitar in the 1970s -- and come the ’90s, he was listed by just about every contemporary r ..more

Alcatrazz　

Alcatrazz was originally formed as a vehicle for vocalist Graham Bonnet, but became famous for introducing budding guitar heroes instead, namely Swedish phenom Yngwie J. Malmsteen and ex-Fr ..more

Alice Cooper　

Originally, there was a band called Alice Cooper led by a singer named Vincent Damon Furnier. Under his direction, Alice Cooper pioneered a grandly theatrical and violent brand of heavy metal ..more

Amorphis　

Lead guitarist Esa Holopainen and drummer Jan Rechberger formed the band Amorphis in Finland in 1990. To complete their lineup they recruited vocalist/guitarist Tomi Koivusaari and bassist ..more

Arch Enemy　

Formed by ex-Carnage, Carcass, and Candlemass guitarist Michael Amott (also of Spiritual Beggars) with his brother Christopher (Armageddon), Arch Enemy took a straight-ahead ap ..more

Autumn's Child　

Badlands　

Led by former Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Jake E. Lee and one-time Black Sabbath vocalist Ray Gillen, Badlands was one of the most talented bands to spring from the fertile hair band sce ..more

Battle Beast　

Black Sabbath　

An English hard rock institution whose influence on heavy metal cannot be overstated, Black Sabbath not only pioneered the genre, they helped launch the career of one of its most colorful and contr ..more

Black Swan　

Blackmore's Night　

Legendary Deep Purple and Rainbow guitarist Ritchie Blackmore (b. April 14, 1945, Weston-super-Mare, England) shifted his musical focus away from hard rock in the late ’90s and started concen ..more

Bloodbound　

Bollnas, Sweden’s Bloodbound was formed in the summer of 2004 by kindred metallic spirits Tomas Olsson (lead guitar) and Fredrik Bergh (keyboards), both of whom had cut their teeth with sever ..more

Blue Oyster Cult　

Blue Oyster Cult was the thinking man’s heavy metal group. Put together on a college campus by a couple of rock critics, it maintained a close relationship with a series of literary figures ( ..more

Bring Me The Horizon　

Fronted by a tattooed clothing designer and influenced by death metal, grindcore, and emo, Bring Me the Horizon aren’t the average deathcore band. The group was formed in 2004 from the ashes of sev ..more

Chez Kane　

Coroner　

From their modest beginnings as roadies for avant-garde Swiss metal legends Celtic Frost, the members of Coroner carved out one of the most unique careers in the European thrash metal scene. The ..more

Cryptopsy　

Making a splash on the Montreal death metal scene with their 1993 demo Ungentle Exhumation, Cryptopsy were immediately recognized in Europe after signing to Germany’s Invasion Records the following ..more

Dangerous Toys　

When Dangerous Toys released their self-titled debut album on Columbia records in 1989, their raw southern rock and metal served as an immediate attack on glam metal’s reign on MTV and rock radi ..more